This week were joined by the Rianna who is the co-founder of Project Myopia; co-editor of the Colour of Madness and PhD researcher at Kings College London. We discuss whiteness within the academy, decolonising H.E and mental health and illness for Black and Brown people in the UK.
We are particularly passionate during this episode so expect some strong language!

As a black person, simply existing in institutional spaces can be a trial. When these spaces are soaked in colonial legacies, and cater to white cultural norms, expectations and experiences – just navigating these worlds that were not built for you takes an extra level of effort and energy that may be invisible to people around you.

In a world where asserting that your life does in fact ‘matter’ is a radical act, it can feel impossibly naive to dream of equality, of a black life lived in dignity. Patrisse Khan Cullors, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, dares to dream of that radical future.

When They Call You A Terrorist by Xenia Latii
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It strikes me that to be labelled a terrorist by the US Government – along with the likes of Angela Davis, Assata Shakur, the entire Black Panther Party and countless other black rights activists – is nothing short of an honour. They called Martin Luther King Jr. a terrorist too, but the white American cultural memory is short.

Illustration by Arta Ajeti
When I started university, as a Black English literature student, I found my programme heavily weighted towards literature written by straight, white, upper-class men. I rarely found myself reflected in the texts I studied or the people who taught me.

In this episode of New Activists, Munroe speaks with Rianna Walcott about how education syllabuses should be more diverse.

Witch side are you on? by Terri Po
In a world of Sexy Scientist costumes and whitewashed Geisha get-ups, the witch has prevailed as a feminist fallback for socially conscious trick-or-treaters. And, er, we’re about to ruin that for you too...

Illustration by Raj Dhunna
Does filming and sharing the strife of black people harm more than it helps? Rianna Walcott questions the most dangerous black tropes and surveys a history of white gaze on black pain.